The European Commission has just revealed its updated strategy for internal use of Open Source Software for the years 2014-2017. Specific objectives of the renewed strategy include equal treatment of open source and proprietary solutions in procurement, and an increased participation in the work of communities involved in building software used by the Commission. “We use a lot of open source ... [Continue Reading]

A new toolkit is being launched to target faster public sector adoption of Open Document Format. Released today by the Community for Open Interoperability Standards (the UK arm of Open Forum Europe), the toolkit contains a folder of principles and infographic for Government Technology leaders to use in educating public sector workers on the options and opportunities for ODF use. This publication ... [Continue Reading]

Today is Document Freedom Day, the international day to celebrate and raise awareness of Open Standards. On this occasion, we would like to reflect on the importance for public institutions in general, and for the European Commission in particular, considering its leadership role, of using Open Standards in all their digital communication and services.
Open Standards are formats and protocols ... [Continue Reading]

OpenForum Europe (OFE) has jointly signed today an open industry statement, together with Digital Europe, EDIMA, Bitkom and CCIA. The statement supports the European Parliament copyright report drafted by MEP Julia Reda, which was presented in the Legal Affairs Committee, on 19 January 2015. OFE had previously published a press release following that meeting. The statement welcomes the report's ... [Continue Reading]

On 20 January, MEP Julia Reda presented her draft report to the JURI Committee of the European Parliament on the evaluation of the Copyright Directive (2001/29/EC). This is an important first step in what has been announced as one of the key priorities of the Juncker Commission. The “openness model” has and continues to revolutionise the way we develop and use technology. Copyright has ... [Continue Reading]